Archive for June, 2011

A wispy cloud in the sky above Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. October 17, 2010.

This is my post for Skywatch Friday, a meme for sharing views of the sky from all over the world. To see more, or to join and share your own photos of the sky, click HERE.

If you watch the skies often enough, you will see all kinds of fascinating things. I captured this wispy cloud in a brilliant October sky last year. It wasn’t a part of a larger cloud formation, but just seemed to be suspended in the sky. I thought it was both interesting and pretty.

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I would like to thank each and every one of you for your kind words and prayers on the passing of my mother. The funeral was hard for my Dad (he’ll be 99 in August) but he was doing pretty well on Thursday. The entire family felt surrounded and uplifted by your thoughts and prayers. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Betsy and I are once again taking a blog break. We’ll be traveling for the rest of the month. I’m not sure what kind of skies we’ll encounter, but I expect we’ll both come back with plenty of pictures to share.

My mother died this morning at my sister’s home. She had been in declining health, but apparently had a massive heart attack and died quickly. Betsy and I had seen her (and Dad) on Thursday and I talked with her on the phone Saturday. She sounded very chipper and in good spirits. She had just had some ice cream before I called, which was her favorite snack.

The feature of Mom that most people commented on was her smile. When my parents moved to Tennessee, the children in their new neighborhood called her the “Smile Lady”.

This is my post for the Scenic Sunday meme, which shares beautiful scenes from around the world. To see more Scenic Sunday posts, or to join and show your own pictures, click HERE.

The yard has been keeping me very busy, so I went to the archives for this week’s post.

When we’re on vacation I like to sleep in (in truth I like to sleep in any morning, but that’s another story), but sometimes getting up in the early morning hours is worth the effort.

One such time was when we were at Mount Nebo in Arkansas in December, 2008. We got up before sunrise and drove to Sunrise Point to watch the sun come up. Shortly after we got there we were treated to the scene in the picture above. The horizon turned a gorgeous orange-gold with the sun beginning to peep above the mountains on the other side of the valley.

Sunrise Point, Mount Nebo, Arkansas. December 4, 2008.

A few minutes later the star-burst and fiery clouds announced the arrival of the sun.

Sunrise Point, Mount Nebo, Arkansas. December 4, 2008.

In another few moments the sun cleared the mountain tops and began its climb into the sky. That was definitely worth getting up to see.

The Henry Whitehead Place in Cades Cove, Tennessee, showing the original cabin in the back. May 23, 2011.

A visit to Cades Cove can be scenic, interesting and educational all at the same time. Getting off the beaten path can be fascinating.

Betsy and I came across the Henry Whitehead Place after leaving the Cade Cove Loop Road on our way to Parson Branch Road. The Henry Whitehead Place is really two structures in one. The original cabin (on the right in the picture above) was built by the brothers of Matilda Shields Gregory after her husband deserted her and her young son. Because the brothers needed to get shelter for their sister in a hurry, the cabin they built is one of the roughest in Cades Cove. The logs were rough-hewn with a felling axe and the stone chimney was made of rubble.

In 1898 Matilda married Henry Whitehead, a widower. Henry built one of the nicest log homes in the cove. The home had a brick chimney, which was unheard of at the time because bricks had to be made by hand. The cabin itself was made of square-sawed logs finished inside to be smooth and attractive. It was also warm by Cades Cove standards since the square log construction was naturally well insulated by walls approximately four inches thick with practically no space between the logs.

The interior of the Henry Whitehead Place, Cades Cove. May 23, 2011.

Betsy took this interior shot of the new cabin, showing the square-sawed logs forming the wall.

West Prong Falls, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee. May 23, 2011.

This is my post for Watery Wednesday. To see more of our beautiful watery world, or to join and post your own pictures to share, click HERE.

West Prong Falls is a small (10 feet) waterfall on the West Prong of Little River in the Smokies. It is right along the road on the way to Cades Cove, just past the Tremont turnoff. Betsy and I stop there each time we pass to enjoy the water rushing over the bedrock. The moss on some of the rocks gives the water a green sheen, and provides a very refreshing stop on a drive through the Smokies.